It’s the Cheese
The California Aggie, Oct.1
Fresno Police arrested a food distributor accused of producing and selling cheese made from raw milk products without a license.
The California Dept. of Food and Agriculture investigated Joseph Pino Borelli, the 28-year-old owner of Borelli’s Fine Foods after a CDFA inspector noticed that proper identification numbers were missing from products with the Borelli label.
Borelli produced approximately 8,000 pounds of unpasteurized mozzarella, ricotta and cacciotta cheeses, as well as other cheese products every month. He sold his cheese to restaurants and food distributors in the Bay Area.
People who eat unpasteurized cheese could contract Listeria monocytogenes, responsible for 2 deaths in 1999.
“This is a major food safety issue,” CDFA Secretary William Lyons said in a release. “It’s critical that processors become licensed and conduct their business according to uniform cleanliness and safety standards.”
University Patients to Receive More Protection
The California Aggie, Oct. 4
The National Institute of Health has raised standards for University researchers conducting experiments on humans due to recent deaths and overdoses of patients at medical research centers.
Recently, UC San Diego, the University of Pennsylvania and John Hopkins University had to suspend or shut down their human subject studies programs after concerns arose about whether patients were given adequate information before consenting o a study.
“Informed consent is an ongoing process, not just a signed document,” Director for the Office of Human Research Protection David Holt said.
University researchers who work with human patients must now complete an online course.
UC Davis depends on an Institutional Review Board, which processed approximately 1,200 proposed projects last year.
“The Institutional Review Board makes sure that all research above minimal risk level to subjects provides an informed consent document to participants,” Holt said. “The IRB reviews this document closely to make sure it adequately informs the participants of their involvement in the particular research project of which they are volunteering.”
UC Berkeley Alumni See Spots
The Daily Californian, Oct. 3
Three UC Berkeley Alumni have designed a small plastic box the size of a Zippo lighter, which they describe as the “Holy Grail” for advertisers.
The Dot Finder would store data when placed upon what the company calls “Power Dots,” 5-millimeter artistic circles found in magazines, newspapers and other print media. Each pattern would correspond to a number, which the Dot Finder would then transfer to the user’s PC once in range. The information would then be e-mailed to the user.
The Dot Finder, because of its ability to read dots, could be used in applications other than advertisement.
“It can be used in security applications,” said Keith Blei, president of Find the Dot. “You could put it in a passport and anybody can verify your identity. You can see who the person is with the Dot Finder.”
When released to consumers, the Dot Finder will cost about $35 though it is currently used by the medical industry in a limited pilot program.
– Compiled by Sarah Healy
